Group Property 2: Norms

Norms
Acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the groups members

Classes of Norms
Performance norms - level of acceptable work Appearance norms - what to wear Social arrangement norms - friendships and the like Allocation of resources norms - distribution and assignments of jobs and material

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Group Norms and the Hawthorne Studies

A series of studies undertaken by Elton Mayo at Western Electric Companys Hawthorne Works in Chicago between 1924 and 1932 First, they examined relation between the physical environment and productivity. Experiment group - varying intensity of illumination. Control group - constant intensity of illumination Results were bewildering - productivity increased in the experiment group even if the light intensity was increased or decreased. Productivity decrease only when the light intensity had been reduced to moonlight.

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The Hawthorne Studies

Second experiment in relay assembly test room, where small group of women was isolated from the main work group.
Only significant difference was that in place of observer a research assistant was kept. The result showed personal absences and due to sickness were approximately one-third of those in regular production department.

Third experiment in bank wiring observation room introduced a sophisticated wage incentive plan.
The assumption was that individual workers would maximize their productivity when they saw that it was directly related to economic rewards. The result was their output became controlled by a group norm that determined what was proper day's work.

The Hawthorne Studies

Research Conclusions Worker behavior and sentiments were closely related. Group influences (norms) were significant in affecting individual behavior. Group standards (norms) were highly effective in establishing individual worker output.

Money was less a factor in determining worker output than were group standards, sentiments, and security.

Norms and Behavior

Conformity
Gaining acceptance by adjusting ones behavior to align with the norms of the group

Reference Groups
Important groups to which individuals belong or hope to belong and with whose norms individuals are likely to conform

Solomon Asch Studies

Demonstrated the power of conformance Will the pressures to conform result in an unsuspecting subject (USS) altering his/her answer to align with the others?
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Defying Norms: Deviant Workplace Behavior

Deviant Workplace Behavior Also called antisocial behavior or workplace incivility Voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational norms and, in doing so, threatens the well-being of the organization

Typology: Production working speed, Leaving early, Wasting resources Property damage and stealing, lying about hours worked Political favoritism and gossip Personal Aggression sexual harassment, verbal abuse
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Group Influence on Deviant Behavior

Group norms can influence the presence of deviant behavior Simply belonging to a group increases the likelihood of deviance Being in a group allows individuals to hide creates a false sense of confidence that they wont be caught

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Group Property 3: Status

Status Characteristics Theory A socially defined position or rank given to groups or group Status others it one of three sources: members byderived fromdifferentiates group members

Power a person has over others Important factor in understanding behavior Ability to contribute to group goals Significant motivator Personal characteristics
Power over Others Ability to Contribute Personal Characteristics Group Member Status

Status Effects
On Norms and Conformity High-status members are less restrained by norms and pressure to conform Some level of deviance is allowed to high-status members so long as it doesnt affect group goal achievement On Group Interaction High-status members are more assertive Large status differences limit diversity of ideas and creativity On Equity If status is perceived to be inequitable, it will result in various forms of corrective behavior
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Group Property 4: Size

Group size affects behavior Size:
Twelve or more members is a large group Seven or fewer is a small group

Best use of a group:

Attribute
Speed Individual Performance Problem Solving

Small
X X

Large

Diverse Input
Fact-finding Goals Overall Performance X

X
X

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Issues with Group Size

Social Loafing Performance The tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when working individually Ringelmanns Rope Pull: greater levels of productivity but with diminishing returns as group size increases Caused by either equity concerns or a diffusion of responsibility (free riders) There will be a reduction in efficiency where Group Size individuals think that their contribution cannot be measured.

 Managerial Implications Build in individual accountability Prevent social loafing by: Setting group goals Increase intergroup competition Use peer evaluation Distribute group rewards based on individual effort

Group Property 5: Cohesiveness

Degree to which group members are attracted to each other and are motivated to stay in the group Managerial Implication
To increase cohesiveness:
Make the group smaller. Encourage agreement with group goals. Increase time members spend together. Increase group status and admission difficulty. Stimulate competition with other groups. Give rewards to the group, not individuals. Physically isolate the group.
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Relationship Between Group Cohesiveness, Performance Norms, and Productivity

Group Structure - Composition

Group Demography
The degree to which members of a group share a common demographic attribute, such as age, sex, race, educational level, or length of service in the organization, and the impact of this attribute on turnover

Cohorts
Individuals who, as part of a group, hold a common attribute.

Group Processes
Synergy An action of two or more substances that results in an effect that is different from the individual summation of the substances

Social-facilitation effect The tendency for performance to improve or decline in response to the presence of others.

Effects of Group Processes

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Group Decision Making

Decision-making Large groups facilitate the pooling of information about complex tasks. Smaller groups are better suited to coordinating and facilitating the implementation of complex tasks. Simple, routine standardized tasks reduce the requirement that group processes be effective in order for the group to perform well. The research on social facilitation tells us that the performance of simple, routine tasks tends to be sped up and made more accurate by the presence of others.

Group Decision Making vs. Individual Choice

Group Strengths:
Generate more complete information and knowledge Offer increased diversity of views and greater creativity Increased acceptance of decisions Generally more accurate (but not as accurate as the most accurate group member) Time-consuming activity Conformity pressures in the group Discussions can be dominated by a few members A situation of ambiguous responsibility

Group Weaknesses:

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Group Decision Making

Groupthink Situations where group pressures for conformity deter the group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views Hinders performance Groupshift When discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a solution, group members tend to exaggerate the initial positions that they hold. This causes a shift to more conservative or more risky behavior.

Groupthink
Symptoms: Group members rationalize any resistance to the assumptions they have made Members apply direct pressures on those who express doubts about shared views or who question the alternative favored by the majority Members who have doubts or differing points of view keep silent about misgivings There appears to be an illusion of unanimity Minimize Groupthink by: Reduce the size of the group to 10 or less Encourage group leaders to be impartial Appoint a devils advocate Use exercises on diversity

Group Decision-Making Techniques

Interacting Groups
Typical groups, in which the members interact with each other face-to-face.

Electronic Meeting

A meeting in which members interact on computers, allowing for anonymity of comments and aggregation of votes.

Group Decision-Making Techniques

Nominal Group Technique A group decision-making method in which individual members meet face-to-face to pool their judgments in a systematic but independent fashion. 1. Members meet as a group but, before any discussion takes place, each member independently writes down his or her ideas on the problem. 2. After this silent period, each member presents one idea to the group. 3. Each member takes his or her turn. 4. The group now discusses the ideas for clarity and evaluates them. 5. Each group member silently and independently rank-orders the ideas. 6. The idea with the highest aggregate ranking determines the final decision

Group Decision-Making Techniques

Brainstorming An idea-generation process that specifically encourages any and all alternatives, while withholding any criticism of those alternatives. The process: 1. The group leader states the problem clearly. 2. Members then free-wheel as many alternatives as they can in a given length of time. 3. No criticism is allowed, and all the alternatives are recorded for later discussion and analysis. 4. One idea stimulates others, and group members are encouraged to think the unusual.

Evaluating Group Effectiveness

Type of Group Effectiveness Criteria Number and quality of ideas Social Pressure Money Costs Speed Task Orientation Potential for Interpersonal Conflict Commitment to Solution Interacting Low High Low Moderate Low High Brainstorming Moderate Low Low Moderate High Low Nominal High Moderate Low Moderate High Moderate Electronic High Low High Moderate High Moderate

High
High

N/A
High

Moderate
Moderate

Moderate
Low

Development of Group Cohesiveness

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